Study: CTE found in a quarter of deceased NFL players
At least one in four former National Football League (NFL) players who died between 2016 and 2021 was found to have chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). This is stated in a study reported by Channel NewsAsia.
Study data
During this period, 878 former NFL players died. Researchers said that 235 of them donated their brains, and CTE was found in 215 of the donated samples.
CTE is a degenerative disease that can be definitively diagnosed only after a person's death. The study by Mass General Brigham, Boston University and the Concussion & CTE Foundation also notes that dementia was common among brain donors.
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Hits during training
The study's lead author, Daniel Daneshvar, head of physical medicine and rehabilitation at Mass General Brigham and an associate professor at Harvard Medical School, said that repeated brain injuries are a known factor in elevated rates of neurodegenerative diseases. According to him, NFL players have a mortality rate from such diseases approximately four times higher than in the general population.
Daneshvar emphasized that former players sustained most head impacts not at the NFL level, but in college, school and youth sports. He called for restrictions on contact practices to be extended to all levels of American football and noted that nearly 70% of head impacts occur during practices.
The NFL's 2011 collective bargaining agreement limited the number of contact practices during the season. A league representative said the NFL continues to introduce measures to reduce concussions and head impacts and urged former players to seek medical care if they have health concerns.
